Messiah College News Archive

The Salvation Army of the Harrisburg Capital City Region has named President Kim Phipps as its 2012 Salvation Army Civic Honoree. The Salvation Army will recognize President Phipps at a special dinner on Tuesday, May 15, where she will be honored by her colleagues and supporters from the regional business, nonprofit, civic and educational communities.  

The Salvation Army recently distributed a letter of tribute for President Phipps that read in part: “As an actively involved leader in our community, Dr. Phipps sets the example of service and social responsibility for thousands of Messiah College students and faculty members. We are pleased to honor Dr. Phipps at the 2012 Civic Event and to recognize our partnership with the entire Messiah College family in service to our community.”

World Vision has awarded the Collaboratory for Strategic Partnerships and Applied Research at Messiah College a contract for two projects that will be funded at $733,000 over three years with money from the Conrad Hilton Foundation. Read the rest of this entry »

Accountants, artists, engineers and English majors alike aren’t having trouble finding employment, according to a post-graduation survey administered by the Messiah College Career Center.

Ninety-five percent of survey respondents from the Class of 2011 indicated that they were employed or in a graduate/professional program within six to nine months after graduation.  That rate is significantly higher than the national employment rate of 56%, according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers.

Messiah has been recognized for its commitment to service on campus and in the community with a place on the 2012 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll.

This year’s recognition was noted by PennSERVE: The Governor’s Office of Citizen Service.

Richard Schaeffer, associate professor of chemistry, was recently awarded a National Science Foundation Partnerships for Innovation Project Seed Grant for his project, “The Use of Phosphate (Apatites) as Heavy Alkaline Earth Metal Remediation Agents,” an investigation using materials based on readily available minerals to render some heavy-metal pollutants less dangerous in the environment.  Specifically, Schaeffer and four students will attempt to transform the contaminating metals into forms that are less soluble in natural waters and less bioavailable.

 Messiah College is one of 148 colleges and universities nationwide to receive Tree Campus USA designation from the Arbor Day Foundation. Tree Campus USA recognizes sustainably managed college campuses and their commitments to effective community forestry management.

Tree Campus USA was launched in 2008 by the Arbor Day Foundation as a way to honor colleges, universities and their leaders for promoting healthy trees and engaging students and staff in the spirit of environmental stewardship.

Messiah College owns 450+ acres and much of that property is heavily forested and undeveloped. To promote the health, safety and beauty of Messiah’s trees, a sub-group of the college’s Sustainability Committee drafted a Campus Tree Care Plan. It was this plan that earned recognition from the Arbor Day Foundation. Key components of that plan include inventorying and digitally tagging all the campus trees.

Katie Todd `13 is one of 162 students selected as a 2012 Newman Civic Fellow, an award recognizing inspiring college student leaders who have worked to find solutions for challenges facing their communities.

Todd is passionate about environmental justice. She volunteers weekly at an urban farm in Harrisburg. She also works with the Agape Center for Service and Learning as the Sustainable Agriculture Coordinator, connecting volunteers with opportunities to serve in local organizations related to food distribution, gardening, and advocacy.

As a Newman Civic Fellow, Todd will join a network of Fellows around the country. Together — sharing ideas and tools through online networking — the Fellows will leverage an even greater capacity for service and change, and will continue to set examples for their classmates and others. 
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At the 32^nd annual  conference of The Association of Collegiate Conference and Events Directors-International  (ACCED-I) in Denver, Colorado,  Messiah College was awarded the Outstanding Institutional Achievement Award 2012 for the “Messiah College Christmas,” in the category of one-time events. 

Messiah College Christmas is a collaborative effort between many on-campus offices, including the president’s office, development, marketing and public relations, dining, campus events and conference services.

Robin Collins, professor of philosophy at Messiah College, received a $48,000 Senior Fellowship from the Center for Christian thought at Biola University for the spring semester of 2013.

Collins’ proposal is to further elaborate a potentially revolutionary view of the human soul which he published recently in a highly acclaimed article. His fellowship is part of the Center’s 2012-2013 research initiative on neuroscience and the soul.

David Foster, Messiah College professor of biology and environmental science, is managing a $35,800 grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection to plant a riparian buffer along 500 feet of a stream, located at the base of Cemetery Hill, which feeds the Yellow Breeches. The buffer will resemble a meadow; sycamore and other native trees will provide needed shade to keep the water cool for wildlife and to slow down erosion.

In addition, the grant will allow the College to install a rain garden in the area adjacent to the riparian buffer. This will catch runoff coming across the field from Grantham Road when that particular area floods. This half-acre rain garden will contain native plants that attract butterflies; it is expected to be completed by the end of summer.